1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is generally related to a device which facilitates the flushing of an outboard motor cooling system with fresh water and, more particularly, to a flushing system that provides an extendible conduit that can be maneuvered to allow convenient connection to a water supply.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The cooling system of an outboard motor should periodically be flushed to remove residue from the internal passages of the cooling system particularly when used in a salt water environment. This requirement is well known and understood by those skilled in the art. Many different devices have been provided to facilitate the flushing of the engine cooling systems of outboard motors.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,934,957, which issued to Sato et al on Aug. 10, 1999, describes an outboard motor having an oil pan positioned on the underside of the engine and having an exhaust passage, a water supply passage for cooling water and a waste water passage extending down from the engine and passing near the oil pan. The exhaust passage, the water supply passage, and the waste water passage are molded as a single unit with the oil pan, and provide a simple, lightweight structure that does not result in an increase in the number of parts or assembly man hours necessary for construction. The oil pan is protected by exhaust heat by the water passages, and a flush port to clean the cooling system is easily accessible.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,065,325, which issued to Maloney on Dec. 27, 1977, describes an adaptable flush attachment for marine engines having side cooling water ports. This application discloses a device universally adaptable for use in flushing outboard and inboard/outboard marine engines; this being possible due to the unique design of the strap and the shape of the cups allowing for the device to attach flush against the motor shaft housing on motors having shaft housings of different dimensions and contours, something not accomplished by any previously known means.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,820,427, which issued to Valdes on Oct. 13, 1998, describes an outboard flushing adaptor. The adaptor assembly is designed to effectively flush outboard motors by directing the flushing water directly into plurality of water inlets normally formed in the lower gear case housing portion of the outboard motor. The adaptor assembly includes a base removably attached at an inlet end thereof to a source of water such as a water hose and including an outlet end having a conduit assembly connected in water receiving relation thereto and extending outwardly therefrom. The distal end of the conduit assembly is specifically dimensioned and configured to be inserted within one or more of the water inlets formed in the outboard motor housing and form a defined, a focused, concentrated and generally water tight seal with the water inlets so that water may be delivered directly thereto under pressure to ensure adequate distribution throughout the entire cooling system of the outboard motor while minimizing or effectively eliminating the inadvertent and concurrent introduction of air to the cooling system and or misdirection of water outside of the inlets during the flushing process.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,725,403, which issued to Ridolfo on Mar. 10, 1998, describes a marine outboard motor flush and run tank and method of flushing a marine outboard motor. A method of flushing an outboard motor using a marine outboard motor flush and run tank wherein the marine outboard motor flush and run tank comprises a flush trough member, a fluid inlet and a fluid outlet is disclosed. The method of flushing an outboard motor flushes from the coolant system of an outboard motor salt, silt and other material. An organic detergent is added to fresh water for forming a mixture which is siphoned into the coolant system for breaking down and purging the salt, silt, and other material from the coolant system.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,671,906, which issued to Rosen on Sep. 30, 1997, describes a flush valve. The invention is a flush valve for a water cooled, marine outboard engine having a flush orifice. The flush valve includes a valve body having an engine attachment end and a flush water source end. The valve body has a channel between the engine end and the source end. The engine end of the valve body can be affixed into the flush orifice of the engine. The flush valve also includes a means for obstructing a discharge flow of cooling liquid from the engine end of the hollow valve body.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/062,253, which was filed by Jaszewski et al on Jan. 31, 2002 (M09564) discloses a combined tell-tale fitting with water flushing attachment. A tell-tale system is provided for an outboard motor in which the tell-tale fluid conduit is connectable to an external water source, such as a water hose, and is extendible away from the cowl of the outboard motor in order to facilitate its use during a flushing operation. When not being used in the flushing procedure, the connector of the fluid conduit is snapped into position in connection with the cowl to maintain its position when used as a tell-tale port.
The patents described above are hereby expressly incorporated by reference in the description of the present invention.
Known flushing systems for outboard motors do not provide a convenient way in which the cooling system can be flushed with fresh water from an external water supply by an operator of the associated marine vessel from within the marine vessel itself. Most flushing systems known to those skilled in the art require that the external water supply be connected to the outboard motor at a position that is not conveniently accessible to a person remaining within the marine vessel itself. In turn, most known flushing systems require that the marine vessel first be removed from the body of water in which it is operated in order to flush its cooling system. It would therefore be significantly beneficial if a flushing adaptor for an outboard motor could be provided that allows the operator of the boat to flush the cooling system without leaving the boat itself. It would also be beneficial if the outboard motor cooling system could be flushed while the marine vessel remains in the body of water in which it is operated. Also, it would be more convenient for the operator of a marine vessel if the operator is provided with the option of either remaining in the boat or not during the flushing operation and also be given the option of flushing the cooling system either when the boat remains in the body of water in which it is operated or is removed from the body of water and supported by a boat trailer or other support mechanism.
A flushing adaptor for an outboard motor, made in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention, comprises a conduit having a first end and a second end. The first end is connected in fluid communication with the cooling system of the outboard motor. In also comprises a hose fitting attached to the second end of the conduit and an opening formed in an outer surface of the outboard motor. A lid, which is removably attachable to the hose fitting, is shaped to be removably attachable to the opening. A check valve is disposed in fluid communication with the conduit in order to inhibit fluid flow through the conduit in a direction from the first end of the conduit to the second end.
The preferred embodiment of the present invention further comprises a tether attached to the lid and to the conduit for maintaining the lid in a region proximate the conduit. The hose fitting is a female hose fitting in a preferred embodiment of the present invention and the lid is threaded for attachment to the hose fitting in threaded association therewith. The lid comprises two tab extensions and the opening comprises two slots, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The two slots are shaped to receive the two tab extensions. The lid is attachable to the opening by rotating the lid when the two tab extensions are disposed in the two slots. The opening is disposed at a front surface of the outboard motor and the conduit is shaped to have a length which is greater than the distance between the second end and the point of attachment between the first end and the cooling system of the outboard motor. In a particularly preferred embodiment of the present invention, the conduit is shaped to have a length which is greater, by a first magnitude, than the distance between the second end and the point of attachment between the first end and the cooling system of the outboard motor, wherein the first magnitude is at least equal to one half of the width of a cowl of the outboard motor. This extra length of conduit allows the operator of the marine vessel to use the present invention either while remaining in the boat or by standing at either side of the outboard motor while the boat and outboard motor are supported by a boat trailer or other support mechanism. The extra length facilitates the connection of an external water supply, such as a garden hose, to the present invention in either of these positions.